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Where to Put the Comma, Period, Colon, and Semicolon When Using Quotation Marks

Where to Put the Comma, Period, Colon, and Semicolon When Using Quotation Marks

SHARON’S BLOG

punctuation This compelling grammar lesson answers such thorny questions as this one: “Mom, does a period go before or after the last quotation mark?”

You can find the first in the series of grammar tutorials here; it’s all about compound sentences, coordinating conjunctions, and commas. And if that doesn’t create some excitement in the classroom, I don’t know what will.

Punctuation and quotation marks tutorial

This week’s tutorial includes the following:

  1. An infographic to teach the material
  2. A set of sentences your students can correct to reinforce the material
  3. The answers to the sentences

There are only two rules (can you believe it?), and they are easy (again, is it to be believed?).

This lesson does not cover quotation marks in dialog. Tarzan is in charge of that here.

As you’ll notice by the infographic,

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The Memory of Snow

MIDDLE SCHOOL PROMPTS

snow memoryIn The Giver by Lois Lowry, young Jonas becomes the Receiver of Memories. Because his people control the weather, he’s never seen snow. The first cultural memory transmitted to him from The Giver is of snow.

Here’s how Lois Lowry writes Jonas’s first encounter with the idea of snow. Notice how she uses many senses to communicate snow’s feel to readers:

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What Memory Would You Give?

What Memory Would You Give?

HIGH SCHOOL PROMPTS

Memories are powerful.

Jonas finds that out in Lois Lowry’s The Giver.

Memories can cause pain. They also can bring hope, courage, or feelings of love.

Although no one can transmit memories from one person to another simply by touching them, this is exactly what happens in The Giver, and a memoryparticular memory gives Jonas wisdom when he has to make an important life-and-death decision. I won’t say anything more because I don’t want to spoil the book or the movie for you.

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How to Use Commas in Compound Sentences with Coordinating Conjunctions

How to Use Commas in Compound Sentences with Coordinating Conjunctions

SHARON’S BLOG

commasOkay, so the title of today’s article isn’t the most exciting. In fact, you might find it downright boring—or intimidating.

I’ve been known to zone out when my husband tries to explain football lingo and rules to me. My eyes glaze over. My ears stop working. The same might be true for your students and the subject of commas.

Commas, Compound Sentences, and Coordinating Conjunctions

You can use the infographic below to teach students when to use commas in a compound sentence that is joined by a coordinating conjunction.

In this tutorial, you’ll find the following goodies:

  1. An infographic to teach the material
  2. A free, downloadable exercise
  3. The answers
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A Real Science-Fiction Town

A Real Science-Fiction Town

HIGH SCHOOL PROMPTS

This real-life news report is just too good to pass up. I had to share it with you.

What would you do if most of the people in your town moved away, disappeared, or died?

According to Chuck Sheppard’s News of the Weird—and this qualifies—an older woman moved back to her hometown in Japan to find that it was no longer thriving. In fact, it was down to about 37 people.

What did this intrepid woman do?

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The Discoveries of Youth

The Discoveries of Youth

MIDDLE SCHOOL PROMPTS

There’s an advantage to being very, very young. I’m talking about younger than you are now.

When you’re really little, you discover new things all the time, things that seem old or boring to you now. Everything is amazing; everything is new.

The following is a passage from The Joy Luck Club by Amy Tan. It’s about a woman remembering back to her youth, thinking about the first time she had discovered . . . well, I’ll let you read it:

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Young Entrepreneurs

Young Entrepreneurs

SHARON’S BLOG

How about writing something fun with your children, something that involves dreams and schemes?

Here’s the background: My husband and I traveled to California one year to participate in the Great Homeschool Convention in Ontario, California. At a Winchell’s Donut House in Las Vegas—have you ever tasted their pineapple fritters?!—we saw an interesting entrepreneur who had set up shop in the parking lot.

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How to Avoid Plagiarism

How to Avoid Plagiarism

SHARON’S BLOG

Today’s article comes to you from my friend Lily Iatridis of Fortuigence.com. Her article is a tutorial on plagiarism and how to avoid it. You’ll even find helpful links your students can use to create those pesky citations.

In addition, Lily shares a solid method for taking notes and for keeping track of all the sources. And check out her handy anti-plagiarism checklist at the end!

This is well worth the read. I won’t be surprised if you use this article often as a reference for you and your children throughout the school year.

You can find Lily’s online writing course Essay Rock Star here.

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